The Lost Throne

The Lost Throne follows two seperate story lines, one a rescue operation/treasure hunt beginning in St. Petersburg, Russia, and the other the investigation of the beheading of several monks in a montaintop monestery in Greece. Both eventually come together although it's hardly worth reading the 400 pages it takes to get there.

Neither story line is particularly plausible or even interesting. In the first story two ex-special forces types sneak into Russia to 'rescue' an American woman who witnessed the murder of her employer. There was no explanation as to why she needed rescuing when she could simply have boarded a plane for home. The murder investigation part of the story is even more implausible but explaining why would be too much show more of a spoiler (not that there is too much to spoil).

Another thing about this book that I found particularly irksome is that the author allows supposedly well trained military and law enforcement personnel refer to firearms as 'guns'. This may sound petty but if these guys are calling their weapons 'guns' they can't possibly be the professionals the author is trying to portray them as.

If you are looking for an exciting testosterone-laden adventure there are plenty of good ones out there but this is not one of them. show less

Oh dear ... what a disappointment. The previous two books ['Sign of the Cross' and 'Sword of God':] were formulaic but had a certain raw energy and innocent paciness that made them enjoyable. Chapters were short and ended on a high note so you wanted to keep turning the page even though you knew that you were just munching on boy-chocolate.

This one is formula without the energy, too long and leisurely, with dull plot McGuffins, hackneyed characterisation and an excessive use of cut-and-paste wiki-description of the sites (a fault of the first books, overlooked by the fact that things actually happened faster in the scenery). Halfway, I was dying for one of the heroes to make a pass at the Barbie-blonde Alison just to relieve the show more tedium.

Here's a tip to the author. Get a new Editor, someone prepared to do one of two things - either cut the book by a quarter and keep to the formula or able to stand up to you and say the formula is no longer working. Penguin are getting lazy and are doing a disservice to their author.

One of the interesting aspects of the two previous two books was a totally politically incorrect and wonderfully naive approach to Catholicism in the first book and Islam in the second. I yearned for a first strike at Tibetan Buddhism or Judaism (and outrage in California or a court case in Germany), but instead we get a half-hearted false reading of the Orthodox Church and of Heinrich Schliemann's archaology and a reading of Spartan culture straight out of a dumbing down of '300'. Ouch!

Not recommended even if you expect to be bored on a long journey. Shame though - the first two in the series were mad, rollicking adventures and this third suggests that there should not be a fourth. show less

Every book that I read by [a:Chris Kuzneski|136951|Chris Kuzneski|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1458498855p2/136951.jpg] is better than the last. I am always amazed by the amount of research that must have gone into his books. He makes history interesting.

This book is no exception. It was absolutely fascinating to read. High adventure and suspense together with fascinating historical tidbits. Payne and Jones are as humorous and deadly as ever.

I truly recommend this book. I already have the next book I the series on my to read list.

At 560-odd pages, this is a weighty tome, but don't let that intimidate you - this is a fast-paced and very easy to read book - I read it in a weekend. There are a couple of minor plot holes, but it's entertaining and worth the journey.

Jonathan Payne and D.J. Jones are former members of a top secret American military unit. A request for help sends them to Russia to save Allison Taylor whose employer has been murdered. Payne, Jones, and Taylor then pick up her murdered boss’ pursuit of an ancient treasure. Meanwhile, Nick Dial, Chief of the Interpol Homicide Division, is investigating the brutal murders of seven monks in Greece. No routine murders these, it is soon revealed they were committed by men dressed and armed as ancient Spartans. Payne, Jones, and Taylor follow the clues that eventually lead them to Greece, where Dial and his assistant Marcus Andropoulos follow their own clues in an attempt to solve the murders of the monks.

I have been trying to find a book show more like The Da Vinci Code, except one that’s good. I like the idea of searching for lost treasures but I haven’t had much luck so far. I had high hopes for The Lost Throne even though I dislike the use of “top secret” military units and the idea of anyone form Interpol actually heading a murder investigation makes me laugh. I was also willing to overlook 21st Century Greeks, who had maintained ancient Spartan customs and traditions, so perhaps my high hopes were misplaced. Mystery writer James O. Born provided a blurb for the back cover which reads, in part, “Part Tom Clancy, part Dan Brown”, considering my opinion of The Teeth of the Tiger and The Da Vinci Code maybe I should have known better.

In spite of these concerns I enjoyed the book right up until Chapter 70, at which point I lost all hope and considered throwing the book across the room. I don’t wish to give away what happened since some readers may enjoy the book and I don’t wish to spoil it. It’s enough to say that there was a most unbelievable coincidence.

If you enjoyed The Teeth of the Tiger and The Da Vinci Code this is probably a book for you. If you didn’t like them, look elsewhere and if you find a good thriller with a hunt for ancient treasure thrown in, let me know.

I received a review copy of this book from G.P. Putnam's Sons. show less

DJ Jones and Jonathan Payne are disturbed while on vacation and enlisted to rescue a damsel in distress (Allison) who has witnessed the murder of her employer in St. Petersburg, Russia. Determining that the reason for the murder by a hit man has something to do with what Allison's boss was looking for, the three set out on a treasure hunt.

At the same time Nick Dial, the head of Interpol's Homicide division is investigating the brutal mass slaying of an entire community of monks in Greece.
The stories are fast paced and intricately interwoven throughout until they converge at a thrilling climax.

I received this book for review from the publisher, and to be honest, I had delayed reading it, now I wished I hadn't. I found out that this was show more the third in a series with these characters and I will definitely be looking for the first two books. What a great way to start 2010! show less

Once more Kuzneski creates a treasure hunt for ex-Marine types Payne and Jones. Back too, is Nick Dial from Interpol, and both parties weave their own strands through this lengthy journey. The actual content of Lost Throne could easily be condensed, and the sheer volume of redundant narrative creates a bloated action adventure through Europe. The research is evident, and expected, although at times a little shoe-horned in. The main villains of the piece are well thought out and interesting. However Lost Throne is not as good as the sum of its parts, it's to long and the characters are rather shallow and unlikeable. Overall, its an entertaining enough read, it just won't be one to remember.